Trial date set for man accused of assaulting his mother

A Harlan man accused of beating his mother with a stereo made an appearance in Harlan Circuit Court on Thursday.

Ashton Britt, 20, appeared with his attorney Laura Karem of the Public Defender’s Office in front of Judge Henry Johnson.

Karem advised the court that Britt’s case may be a candidate for mediation.

Britt is charged with second-degree assault and menacing.

Johnson set a trial date in the case for Feb. 7.

In other court activity:

* Teddy Smith, 29, of Smith, was sentenced to two years in prison for first-degree fleeing or evading police on foot. Smith’s sentence is to run concurrently with a sentence he is already serving;

* Mary Ward, 29, of Kenvir, was sentenced on a charge of second-degree trafficking a controlled substance to two years in prison. Ward was granted two years probation and ordered to pay restitution;

* Debra Saylor, 45, of Harlan, was sentenced on two counts of second-degree trafficking a controlled substance and three counts of first-degree trafficking a controlled substance. Saylor was granted five years probation with the condition she enrolls in an in-house rehabilitation program for at least nine months;

* Christy Smith, 29, of Manchester, was granted pre-trial diversion on a charge of possession of a methamphetamine precursor. Smith’s diversion is for five years or until she successfully completes drug court.